U.S. NASA astronaut Loral O'Hara (L) and Russian Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko (C) and Nikolai Chub, members of the ISS Expedition 70-71 main crew, during the pre-launch preparations in the Russian-leased Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on September 15, 2023. /CFP
A Russian spacecraft blasted off from Kazakhstan's Baikonur cosmodrome on Friday, carrying two Russian cosmonauts and a U.S. astronaut to join the crew of the International Space Station (ISS), live TV images showed.
At 1853 GMT, the Soyuz MS-24 spacecraft with American Loral O'Hara and Russians Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub on board docked at the ISS, Russia's Roscosmos space agency said.
O'Hara and Chub are on their first spaceflight, while Kononenko is on his fifth.
The Russian cosmonauts are expected to return to Earth after one year, while O'Hara is scheduled to come back in March 2024.
They will join the current crew of Expedition 69, including commander Sergei Prokopyev of Roscosmos.
The spaceship delivered around 120 kg of cargo to the ISS, including photo and video equipment, the astronauts' personal belongings, food and equipment for scientific experiments.
In the course of the 70th and 71st long-term expeditions, which will last a total of 375 days, the astronauts will perform four spacewalks within the framework of the Russian program, and will conduct scientific research. Four Progress MS cargo spaceships are expected to arrive at the ISS during the period.
(With input from Reuters, Xinhua)